RiordanVerse One-Shots

The Magicians of Cairo

Sadie was so excited for her trip to Cairo. She completely ignored the ludicrous warnings from here grandparents who seemed to think that she'd get herself killed down there. Honestly it was ridiculous. She was 19. She was old enough to travel on her own. Well, not alone, she was going with her mates, Liz and Emma. And they were going to have a blast. 

They could already smell the spices when they got out of the airport. 

Emma sighed dreamily. "Isn't it wonderful?" she said. 

"Yes, it is," Liz agreed. 

"It looks like a lot of sand," said Sadie, earning her a light shove in the shoulder. She laughed. "I'm joking! Come on, we have to find our hotel." 

They met up with the man they'd hired to drive them to their hotel. The man didn't speak very good English, which Sadie found slightly annoying. Her friends had to remind her that not everyone spoke English and to cut the man some slack. 

They arrived at the hotel about half an hour later. They didn't realize how far away the hotel, but they got to see a good portion of the city. 

They quickly dropped off their luggage in the rooms. They each grabbed a single bag to carry little things such as their wallets and sunscreen. Sadie had opted for a satchel while Liz and Emma both chose purses. Sadie didn't get why; satchels were bigger and could hold more things. 

Well, Sadie had always been a bit of the odd one out. She wore combat boots and leather jackets to school, and she dyed streaks into her blonde hair. Honestly, she didn't care what others thought; she was just being herself. 

They explored the marketplace in wonder. The place was so full of people and smells that made Sadie feel like she was in a dream. 

"Sadie! Sadie! Sadie!" said Liz excitedly. 

"What?" 

"There are street performers over there!" Emma exclaimed, spotting the same thing Liz had. 

Before Sadie could object, her friends grabbed hold of her arms and dragged her to the front of the crowd. 

There were indeed a group of street performers. A girl in a who looked like she was dressed a gypsy. Her clothes were maroon and flowed around her. She was barefoot, which had to be painful because of the hot ground. Sadie could even feel the heat coming through her boots. She had no idea how this girl was dancing barefoot. 

Anyway, the girl had golden brown skin and black hair. Her eyes were of amber and were lined with what could have been mascara, but something told me it wasn't. 

Moving on to the other two performers. Both were male and dark skinned, though one was a shade darker than the other. Both Had short black hair and brown eyes. Both were also exceptionally muscular. One of them, the one with darker skin, was playing music that the girl was dancing to. The other seemed to be performing along to the music as well, except that he seemed to be throwing swords up into the air and catching them with ease. 

Sadie noticed a box at the foot of what qualified as the performers' stage with various tips inside. Sadie quickly pulled a few dollars out of her wallet and tossed them into the box. 

The performers didn't seem to care. They just kept on going. 

Eventually the song finished, and the performers bowed to the cheering crowd. The boy with the swords once again tossed a sword into the air and caught it behind his back without so much as a glance behind him. The crowd cheered and he bowed again. 

"Ezar," the other boy called to him. Sword boy just smiled at him. The girl rolled her eyes at the other to. 

"Al-balha," she muttered. It was then Sadie realized that they were speaking Arabic. She mentally smacked herself for not realizing that sooner.